A Week From Today…

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2010 AMTA National Music Therapy Conference Cleveland…my plane will be touching down in Cleveland for the 2010 AMTA Conference!  This national music therapy conference is something I look forward to all year long, not only because it is an amazing learning opportunity, but also because I get to reunite with so many of my music therapy friends (and meet many for the first time in person).

This will be my second time attending national conference, and I’m even more excited about it this time around.  Compared to last year’s conference in San Diego, now I know more people, have a better idea of what to expect, and have even more to do.  Here are some of the reasons why I can’t wait to get to Cleveland:

  • The Music Therapy Round Table. Kimberly, Michelle and I formed the Round Table and launched our podcast last January after coming up with the idea during AMTA’s 2009 conference.  We will be meeting up for the first time in person since then to brainstorm new ideas, record the next episode of the podcast, and…
  • CMTE Q: Music Therapy in a Web 2.0 World. The three of us will be teaching this CMTE on Thursday, November 18 at 1:30 pm.  I hope to see many of you there!  If you’d like to attend but can’t for one reason or another, we are planning to offer the CMTE as an online course in the near future.
  • The Erfurt Music Resource. Michelle Erfurt will be hosting a table in the exhibit hall with many of the merchants from the Erfurt Music Resource…including me!  I will have Time to Sing Hello CDs and copies of my songbook on hand, and it’s a pretty safe bet that you’ll find me there frequently throughout conference.

For those of you who are on Twitter, be sure to follow the hashtag #AMTA10 for the latest happenings and news during the week of conference.  I know I will have my iPhone handy at all times, updating both Twitter and my Facebook page.

I’m going to have a hard time concentrating on much else this week now that I’ve caught conference fever.  There is so much to do before I board my plane on Wednesday morning, but I’ll try my best to squeeze in a few more posts between now and then!

Friday Fave: Pecha Kucha

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pecha-kucha-springfield

Pecha whatcha?  That’s what I said when I was first told about this event, which was held for the second time around last night in my city.  Pecha Kucha originated in Toyko back in 2003 and is the Japanese term for “chit chat” — which is basically what the event is all about.

The idea is that each presenter shows and discusses 20 slides for 20 seconds each on any creative topic.  Last night’s presenters included an archaeologist, a “Legomaniac” (my personal favorite), an art gallery employee, a Zumba instructor, and several others…including me!

I had the opportunity to talk about my work as a music therapist, teacher, and singer/songwriter in front of about 200 people.  I was a little intimidated at first by the huge crowd, but it is a very casual and laid-back atmosphere (there was a “beer break” in the middle of the event).  My husband snapped the picture above on his iPhone.

If you are interested in seeing my presentation, come back on Sunday — it will be this week’s “Sunday Singalong” video!  In the meantime, have a wonderful weekend.  I know I will…I’m off to Chicago this afternoon, where I’m meeting up with my best friend for a girls’ weekend :)

Friday Fave: Listen & Learn Turns 2!

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Listen & Learn's 2nd BirthdayThey grow up so fast, don’t they? :) This month has been so incredibly busy that I missed Listen & Learn’s actual birthday (September 4, to be exact) but I figured it’s never too late to celebrate!  2 years and 485 posts is worth a little celebration, don’t you think?

My little website has been through a lot over the past 24 months.  It started as a wee blogspot blog, and then became a BIG blogspot blog when it was featured as a “Blog of Note” by Blogger last September.  But it outgrew its home this summer, and thus found a new one as a self-hosted WordPress site.  Now it’s bigger and better than ever, and it’s not done growing yet!

Listen & Learn has allowed me so many great opportunities, including having a songbook published, recording a studio album, and meeting hundreds of wonderful readers (both online and in the real world).  I have so many more plans for L&L — it feels like I’ve just gotten started!

I continue to be inspired by those of you who read, comment, and benefit from Listen & Learn, so I hope you’ll keep doing all of those things.  I can’t wait to share what I have up my sleeve in the coming weeks, months, and years.  Thank you so much for your support, and for helping me celebrate!

The End is Near…

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The end of the school year, that is!  There are a few big events at the school where I work which signify that summer break is upon us.  One of those events happened just yesterday and is my very favorite of the whole year.

It doesn’t get much better than having all of the students faculty, and staff gathered in one place, singing the songs we’ve been working on in music therapy all year. And better yet, I have a full band! With Mike on bass, Joe on guitar, and Jayne (who unfortunately is not pictured; she is to the right of me) on drums, our songs get quite the rock ‘n roll treatment.

But the fun’s not over yet.  Tomorrow morning, our graduation ceremony will be held in the very same room.  Graduation is always a bittersweet event; as happy as I am for the students, I’m still sad to see them go.  This year I’ll be singing “For Good” (from the musical Wicked) during the ceremony.

Next Wednesday is our last day of school, and in the afternoon we’ll have our annual talent show.  It’s always so entertaining to watch not only students and entire classes, but also various faculty and staff, get up on stage and show off their dancing, singing, and instrument-playing talents.  A couple of classrooms will be performing music therapy “hits” – an awesome choice of repertoire, if you ask me :)

So that’s what is going on around here.  Now I must get to something I’ve been putting off all month…creating summer song packets and CDs for each class.  Although there will be a sub (not a music therapist, but a music teacher who is very skilled in working with my student population) taking over for the summer, I still like to leave materials behind so that the teachers can continue reinforcing the skills and concepts we’ve spent all year learning.  Plus, I don’t want everyone to forget me while I’m away!

Friday Fave: Champions for Children

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I write frequently about children with special needs and the work I (and all of you professionals and parents) do to make their lives better.  But today I want to talk about another group of children: those who have been sexually and physically abused.  This is somewhat of a taboo topic in our society, because people don’t want to think about the fact that this kind of abuse happens.  But the sad reality is that it does, and all too often.

April was National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Illinois is carrying that awareness into May with with weekend’s Champions for Children Walk.  Tomorrow morning, people in 27 cities throughout Illinois will walk in support of the 10,500 abused children that Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs) serve every year.

Working with law enforcement, medical professionals, and other agencies, CACs offer a safe, child-friendly environment for forensic interviews and medical evaluations of the child victim, and on-going support for children who have been abused, as well as their families.  My mom opened the Sangamon County Child Advocacy Center here in Springfield just over 20 years ago, and my stepdad is the current executive director.  This year, in honor of the Champions for Children Walk, my mom and I collaborated on a song which will serve as the event’s theme.  You can listen below, and follow the link to download it for free:

Sometimes I wonder if it matters what I do
Is there anyone who’ll listen, or am I among the few
Who see the pain and hear the cry
And stop to question why?

Rise up and take a stand
Raise your voice, reach out a hand
Be a champion for a child
Speak the words she cannot say
Be the light that she’s been searching for
and give her strength to help her find her way

For a moment stop and wonder
How a child can live in fear
What are they telling us that we cannot hear?
What do they need to ease their pain
the tears that flow like rain?

Chorus

Just think of the changes that we could make
how different our world could be
when silence is broken and their voices are heard
when we open our eyes to see

Chorus

And even though you most likely don’t live in Springfield, or even Illinois, you can “rise up” and be a Champion for Children.  How?  By sponsoring me in tomorrow’s walk, if you feel so inclined.  Any pledge amount, from $1 on up, will go towards the child abuse prevention, education, and direct service to children who have experienced physical and sexual abuse.  Pledges can be made by clicking the “make a donation to this group” link at the very bottom of this page.

Although it’s been raining all week, we’ve been blessed with a beautiful forecast for tomorrow’s walk!  I’ll be singing “Rise Up” to kick things off, and then it’ll be time to get moving.  I can’t wait.  Hope you all have a fantastic Friday and a wonderful weekend!  See you back here on Sunday for this week’s Sunday Singalong video.